Circus Act
by PrincessBite-Me
Summary: Harry lives and travels with a circus and one day Dumbledore's Circus of Magic and Mystery recieves a new member: A strange black panther by the name of Severus. Strangness ensued. Sev/Harry don't like, don't read! :P
1. Flying Trapeze

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything related to the Harry Potter world. I also do not own the manga story Night Circus by Lily Hoshino in the book Alone in My King's Harem.

AN-Hey! Ok so this is yet another story that I'm going to start… . sorry about that… anyways I got this idea from a story by Lily Hoshino in a yaoi manga I was reading. I'm really excited to attempt this story so tell me what you think! : D

Chapter 1- Flying Trapeze

_It's time _thought Harry as he started to climb the rope ladder to the ceiling of the tent. When he reached the top of the ladder he pulled himself gracefully up onto the small, colored platform that resided about 50 feet above the ground. He was sweating freely now in his skin-tight, sequined, blue unitard, as his gaze narrowed in on the bar suspended from two ropes in front of him.

The only thing left to do now was jump. Harry wiped the sweat off of his hands in a last minute effort to calm his nerves as the band started a thundering drum roll below him. The crowd grew silent as they all watched with bated breaths for the awe-inspiring stunt that was about to be preformed.

Knowing he had no more time to spare Harry bunched his knees and jumped, with his hands outstretched, toward the hanging bar four feet in front of him.

He had a fearful thought that he might have missed and would start falling any second now. Just as the thought crossed his mind his hands gripped the bar and he was flying through the air. He made a forward swing then a backward swing before he released the bar and flew through the air again, this time heading towards Hermione Granger. Hermione was hanging by her knees from a bar where she caught Harry's hands mid-leap and together they flew through the air.

Harry swung from bar to bar adding little twists and extravagant flips to the routine as he went. They never had a choreographed routine for the trapeze bars. It would have been too difficult to predict what might happen up in the air. So they left Harry and Hermione alone to do their own act.

Once Harry got past his nerves he was exhilarated by the feeling of flying through the air. In his opinion it was the best feeling in the world. But just as soon as he started to enjoy himself it was time to end his act and return to the ground. With one last mighty swing he did a back flip back up on to the platform he had started on.

Once there he lifted his arms and bowed to the cheering crowd below. Then his moment of fame was over and he was climbing back down the ladder as the show moved on the fire-breather's act. He reached the floor and raced from the center ring to behind the curtain where the other performers waited.

Hermione had gotten there before him and was receiving congratulations on her outstanding performance. When Harry reached her she smiled and told him he had done well before going off with Ron, her boyfriend.

Ron was one of the acrobats that the circus employed. He had twin brothers named Fred and George who were also acrobats and two other brothers named Bill and Charlie. Charlie was the Circus's money-keeper, and Bill helped take care of the many exotic animals that circus kept.

Harry was starting to get tired so he made his way out the back flaps of the Big Top and headed for the train owned by the circus. He found his compartment, crawled in, changed out of his costume, and fell asleep in his corner of the train.

Please review! Please Please PLEASE!!! :D I have the next four chapters of this written and I promise it picks up.


	2. Another Day in the Circus

_AN-well I at least got one review. So all my thanks goes out to __Sylvanus Snape__! Thanks for being my first and only reviewer for this story : D__ Now on with the show! _

Chapter 2- Another Day in the Circus

Harry awoke to the sounds of hurried activity that awoke him every morning. He peeked outside the train to see many big men taking down the big top and other things, to load onto the train. _We must be moving on to the next town_ was his only thought, which was interrupted by a growling sound coming from his stomach.

Hopping out of the train he went off in search of food to appease his grumpy stomach. When he entered the Cooking tent he found it to be a mass of hurried activity also. Quickly he grabbed a plate of cold toast and sausage and a cup of water then went to find a quiet place to eat his breakfast.

He snuck away to the animal tent which had yet to be taken down and loaded. Pushing aside the flap he entered the musky smelling house of animals. Inside there were Exotic birds of Paradise and tricky little monkeys, giant elephants and trained dogs. Then there were Harry's favorites: The Cats. So far their circus had one old grouchy lion and one lazy tiger. They weren't very frightening outside of the ring but once they were brought center stage they were as fierce as any wild jungle cat.

Rounding the corner Harry came upon a new cage that he had never seen before. Curious he slowly approached it to see what lay inside, only to be stopped by Bill.

"Harry! Curious about our newest addition are you? Dumbledore just bought him off of another Ring Master. He's pretty proud of himself about this one. Say's it'll be a real crowd pleaser. Would you like to take a look?" Bill said with a mischievous glint in his eye, as he raised his hand up to the fabric covering the cage.

Harry nodded curiously. With that Bill gaudily flung the cover off the cage to reveal the dark treasure that lay inside.

Harry stared in awe, for in the cage paced the most beautiful panther Harry had ever laid eyes on. It had a coat so dark black that it glowed blue in the light. Its eyes were a deep blue color that glimmered with deep, hidden intelligence which surprised Harry.

Bill continued to speak "the last owner said his name was Severus. He was very mysterious about everything. He didn't know where Severus came from or anything. All he said was that we should make sure that he can't escape, which I think is very odd seeing as how he can't open the cage door with his paws. I think the previous owner was a little loony. His name was Voldemort or something like that. Seemed very strange to me. He kept laughing quietly to himself very evil-like. I think he was more than a little loopy." Bill made a gesture next to his head to indicate craziness.

Harry just nodded, still staring at the panther with a curious expression on his face. The panther seemed very human to him. That fact just made him more curious. Suddenly Harry was pulled out of his thoughts by the men coming in to take the animals to be loaded onto the train.

Harry decided it would be better to get out of there way so he left the Animal tent and proceeded to wander around the slowly disappearing camp that they had lived at for the past 2 weeks. He meandered along until the last call was called and it was time to board the train or be left behind. He hopped onto the nearest car and found it to be the residence of the Weasley brothers. He spent the rest of his day on the train talking and being entertained by the Twins newest pranks, and jokes.

Then as it started to get dark he wandered through all the compartments till he got to his train car. Once there he was surprised to find a large crate or cage in his car. Being as tired as he was he just dismissed it as tent parts that wouldn't have fit anywhere else and he curled up and went to sleep.

Little did he know that his nights were about to get a lot more interesting.

_AN- well there you have it: Chapter two finished! : P I know that this story moves a bit slower than my others but please hang in there with me! Please drop me a review and make me happy! : D_


	3. Heading to Ravenclaw City

Chapter 3- Heading to Ravenclaw City

An- Here is the next chapter so enjoy! :P

The next morning Harry awoke to sunlight streaming into his train compartment from the door in the ceiling that led up to the top of the train. The sun had reached the point in the sky where it was at just the right angle to shine right into Harry's eyes, almost blinding him with its brilliance. Stretching Harry judged it to be sometime around mid-day. With slight interest Harry also noted that the train was still moving meaning that they had not reached their destination yet.

Like a light bulb flickering to life Harry realized with a start that it wasn't a pile of tent parts that occupied his train car all night: It was a cage! And not just any cage but the cage of Severus, the black panther, that Harry had only seen for the first time the day before. Even more unnerving was that the panther was staring directly at Harry very intently.

Stunned all Harry could do was stare right back. Harry thought to himself _It's almost like I'm staring into a person's eyes and not a panthers. _Shaking off the strange feelings that were crawling up his spine, Harry shook his head from side to side as if to knock that idea right out of his head. Frowning he turned away from Severus and headed to the front of the train to find his friends and to ask where they were headed next.

Eventually he found Hermione, Ron, Fred, George, and Bill all in the 2nd car from the front. When he asked where they were headed, Ron just shrugged and Hermione stated that they were headed towards Ravenclaw City and they wouldn't arrive until two nights from now. Armed with that knowledge Harry decided to talk to Bill and ask why his car was now occupied by a large black panther.

Harry made his way over to Bill and seated himself on a rather large, gaudily decorated, steamer trunk that sat seemingly misplaced in the center of the room.

"Hey Harry. Something on your mind?" Bill asked curiously

"Um Yeah. You wouldn't have any idea why I'm sharing a train car with an overly large black cat, would you?"

"Oh… heh, um about that Harry…uh well to tell you the truth, your car was the only one on the train that wasn't already filled with some sort of gizmo that Dumbledore bought to please the crowd. We didn't have anywhere else to put him so… I guess you have a new roommate now Harry! Congrats!" With that said Bill decided that it was apparently time to go get involved in the animated argument that Fred, George, and Ron were having about one of their acrobat routines. The argument had almost escalated into a fist fight by this time and Harry was actually glad Bill had decided to step in or it might have gotten ugly.

Yawning, Harry check the time on the large Grandfather clock that resided in the corner of the Weasley family Car. The clock confirmed Harry's thought that it was probably time to say goodnight to his friends and to head back to his car to eat and then get some sleep. So he did just that.

Once back in his "Room" Harry found himself some bread and dried meat, which he then proceeded to devour. He hadn't realized how hungry he was till that moment. While he finished up he glanced in the direction of Severus's cage and was relieved to find that the large cat was curled up in his cage, fast asleep.

Harry felt a twinge of affection for the panther, after all Harry did like the big circus cats it was just Severus that sometimes gave him the creeps. It was that human look and way that the cat had about him. It just made Harry's spine tingle.

Shrugging off the feeling once more Harry laid down on the pile of soft bags and blankets that made up his mattress, and pulled out his favorite book to read. After a few minutes though Harry felt his eyes growing heavy and he drifted off into a peaceful sleep, unaware of the bright blue eyes that watched him from the darkness.

AN- yes it's short but at least it's something: P Thanks to all the people who spent time reviewing the last two chapters. It made me super happy! :D and please waste a few seconds of your life reviewing this chapter! Thanks!


	4. Secrets and Unexpected Visitors

Chapter 4 – Secrets and Unwanted Roommates

_AN- Here is the next chapter! I'm actually proud of the length even though it's only about three Microsoft document pages long. : D oh well… thanks to the people who reviewed! My apologies to those who want longer chapters . I'll try my hardest to make them longer but no promises. No go and enjoy the story! _

Severus was intrigued. This boy that occupied the corner of the train car in which he now resided, was a very curious person indeed. Not that it matter much while Severus was stuck in this form, but maybe the boy could at least keep him amused for a time.

As the moon reached its peak in the starry, night sky Severus felt his body begin to shift. He felt his face slowly shrinking in on its self to form a rather large nose, a crooked smirk and two dark eyes all framed by black shoulder length hair. His legs and arms slowly began to change shape and his back straightened itself out so he could finally stand on two legs once more. Though to Severus the process seemed to take forever, to anyone watching it all happened in the blink of an eye. One moment there was a panther and the next there stood a man.

Severus was dressed in black trousers and a black shirt that was open at the throat to reveal a silver snake pendant wrapped almost protectively around a large emerald stone. Around each of his wrists was a thick silver bracelet with ancient runes and markings carved into their surfaces. His eyes flashed with emotions: Sadness, hatred, and mischievousness. He looked very much like a handsome dark prince from a fairy tale.

Without a word Severus crossed to the door of his cage and, reaching through the bars, unlatched the cage door. Gracefully he approached the sleeping form of his new train mate. Glancing down at the teens face with mild interest, Severus gently brushed a stray strand of black hair off Harry's face, and then rescued the book from its precarious perch in the sleeping boys grasp.

Marking Harry's spot in the book Severus then placed it on the floor beside the teen's bed and softly covered the sleeping boy with blankets. Once done Severus stood back as if he were an artist admiring his work, though the look on Severus's face was not one of approval but more one of concern.

He realized that in the very short period time since he had first met the teen, he had immediately been drawn to him. It was curious to Severus who had never really cared for anyone or anything in the world to suddenly find himself in such a position. The feelings had him confused.

So he settled down with his back pressed against the bars of his cage to ponder his feelings and watch the teen sleep peacefully. Not really acknowledging that fact that Harry would see him almost immediately if he awoke.

_It must have something to do with the curse _whispered an unseen voice to Severus.

"Maybe" purred Severus, much like a large cat would have done "Then again, maybe not"

_We shall see then _said the same whispering voice.

This time the voice held a hint of finality to it; leave Severus to his peaceful ponderings.

But Harry slept peacefully through the night and not even the sounds of the train slowly, chugging along was enough to drag him from his peaceful dreams. Nor the sounds of Severus climbing quietly back into his cage to shift back into the form which he was cursed with at dawn, could draw the teen from his slumber.

Though when Harry did awake it was to the sounds of Severus growling, and loud curses coming from the right of the cage. Harry sat up abruptly and scrambled to his feet at the foreign voice. As Harry watched a rather handsome but slightly dirty teen backed around the corner of the cage, backed away as far as he could be from the cage bars.

The teen had platinum-blonde hair that fell in messy lengths around his aristocratic face. His bright blue eyes were the same startling color as the sky on a sunny day and his mouth was set in a joyous expression of one who knows something is going to happen that no one else knows. His clothes that had perhaps once been fine were now worn and covered in the dirt of the road.

He had a pack slung over one shoulder that definitely showed he was a traveler or to be more exact: a hobo. This was not the first hobo harry had ever seen, in fact they were constantly hitching free ride on the circus trains and were often thrown off if caught in the act.

The Blonde, upon spotting Harry, set over with his free hand outstretched and a massive grin stretched out on his face. It was hard not to grin back when you saw such a joyful smile. Harry took hold of the blonde's hand just as the hobo began to speak.

Hey there! The names Draco! Draco Malfoy. How ya doing?" Draco said wildly pumping Harry's arm up and down in a firm hand shake.

"Hello I'm Harry Potter. If you don't mind me asking how did you come to be in my train car?"

"Well you see.. ." Started Draco Animatedly as he made himself comfortable sitting cross-legged on the floor "I was just walking the rails when I heard this here train coming. And I had been walking for awhile by that time and I figured it wouldn't hurt nobody's feelings if I hitched a ride for a while. So when you came rushing by, I started running and grabbed the ladder…" Draco had begun to pull things from his knapsack now and Harry watched as he pulled out a mess kit, coffee pot, few pairs of worn socks, and finally a hunk of bread and meat wrapped in a semi-clean, red rag.

"So I climbed the ladder till I got to this hatch seeing as how it was the only one open and I decided I'd come on in and see who was about. But when I dropped down from the trap door your big cat there scared the bejeezus out of me when he started growling and then I saw you. So that's how we ended up here" Draco ended his story and took a large bite out of his hunk of bread before offering a piece of meat to Harry.

Harry accepted it gratefully because he hadn't eaten anything since yesterday afternoon and he was feeling hungry.

After swallowing Draco continued "Quite a cat ya got there. Its eyes are a weird color. Really unique that one"

Harry was confused. The way Draco talked didn't match his appearance at all. If he had to guess Harry suspected that Draco was from a rich family, maybe he was even a runaway. His whole look and way of speaking was all a well thought out disguise, but Harry could see through it all.

"Draco" Harry asked "Where did you really come from?"

_AN- -Laughs- I really like the idea of making Draco a Hobo/runaway! And yes I know he is totally out of character but as I explained in the story: it's all an act. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please leave me a review! :D_


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